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Friands
- 14 T butter (1 stick plus 3/4 stick)
- 3/4 c pistachio nuts, plus a few extra to serve (pecans may be substituted if you add about 1/4 c more – for a total of 1 cup, but the pistachio nuts make this YUM! And don’t worry if you only can find shelled, salted pistachios. Just cut back a tad on the salt.)
- 1 2/3 c confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting
- 3/4 c plus 2 T finely ground almonds (or almond flour)
- 2/3 c flour
- 1/2 tsp Diamond kosher salt
- 5 large egg whites
- fresh strawberries, thinly sliced
- powdered sugar to dust on top (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin pan (muffin pans seem to vary in size. This will make enough for 8-12 muffins. There are also special friand pans, which are oval instead of round and on the small-ish side).
Melt the butter in a small pan, then remove from the heat and leave to cool a little.
Grind 2/3 c of the pistachio nuts in a food processor with the confectioners’ sugar until very finely chopped. Roughly chop the remaining pistachio nuts and set aside.
In another bowl blend together the ground almonds, flour, and salt, and then add the ground pistachio/flour mixture to that and mix again.
Beat the egg whites with a fork until frothy, then pour into the nuts and flour mixture with the melted butter and mix well.
Spoon the mixture into the muffin tin, filling each tin about 3/4 full; add a few strawberries slices to the top of each one, then scatter with the chopped pistachios. Bake for 20–25 minutes until the friands are browned on the edges and springy to the touch and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Serve warm or at room temperature. If using powdered sugar, dust the friands just before serving.
Big Little Meals 